Adult Learning Organisation reports increased interest in education options.
24 Mar 2009 12:45 PM
AONTAS (the National Adult Learning Organisation) has just released figures from their Information Referral Service. The figures cover the period January to March 2009 and are based on queries to AONTAS from people in Ireland looking for more information about going back to education.
A total of 1571 people contacted AONTAS over the three month period. One third of those who contacted the service indicated that they had recently been made unemployed. Men constituted over half of those who made contact with the service.
Commenting on the figures, AONTAS Director Berni Brady said 'We've noticed a dramatic increase in the numbers of adults contacting us for further information about their learning options in line with recent unemployment trends. We can draw a number of conclusions from the figures. First of all, it is obvious that there is an appetite for learning out there, but many adults don't know where to start looking. We have produced an Information Booklet which covers everything from funding to where to find a course, and this is a good starting point for people thinking of going back to learn. Secondly, we can see from the figures that adults need flexible options - for example over 200 of those who rang us were looking for information about part time courses. It's also interesting to note that we are receiving more phone calls and emails from men - this is a new trend emerging where in the past the majority of those who contacted us were women.'
In 2007 the number of people that contacted AONTAS amounted to 3442. In 2008 this figure doubled, rising to 6927. 'In 2009 we expect to see a further increase in these numbers' continued Ms Brady. 'A new category emerging is men who are currently looking to upskill. Adults are well aware of the need to brush up on their skills in order to navigate the recession, but they're not sure how to go about doing this. These may be people who are in fear of losing their jobs and want to prepare themselves to move into alternative employment.'
'This is just the tip of the iceberg' she concluded. 'VECs and community education organisations are also reporting greater demand for their services, indicating that people intend to learn their way out of the recession.'
ENDS
For more information contact
Niamh Farren Communications Officer : 01 406 8220/ 087 911 0569
About AONTAS
AONTAS is the National Adult Learning Organisation. AONTAS is a non-government membership organisation funded by the Department of Education and Science. The organisation's mission is to ensure that every adult in Ireland has access to appropriate and affordable learning opportunities throughout their lives, thus enabling them to contribute to and participate in the economic, social, civic and cultural development of Irish society. The role of AONTAS is to work towards improving the adult education sector in Ireland through policy development, promoting the benefits of adult education and research, and an information referral service for adult learners.
